Ironer



Patented Nov. 7, 1944 UNIT-ED g a IRONER I William E. Stilwell, Jr.,Cincinnati; Ohio, assignor to Empire Ironer,

1 poration of Ohio Inc., Cincinnati, Ohio, a cororiginalapplicationFebruary 14, 1938, Serial No. 190,370." Divided and this applicationMarch 2, 1939, 'SeriaPNo. 259,396 'f This invention relates to powerdriven ironing machines and is particularly directed, to a machine ofthe type employing a rotating rollland a heated ironing shoe adapted tobe engaged with the roll. More particularly, the invention resides. inamachine which is portable. i

@Ih'e ironing machines manufactured heretofore, for use in the laundryoi thehome, have been relatively expensive and quite, heavy. ;The weightand size of these machines have-confined their use to the basement ofthe home, with the result that the housewife has" found their. useinconvenient and has preferred to usethe conventional; electric handiron. Particularly has this been the case. when the family resides inanapartment. Accordinglyfit has been the object of the present inventor toprovide a machinelof extremely low cost and one whichfis of the utmostsimplicity. More particularly, it has been the object toprovide'amachine which is truly portable and can be carried abouttheapartment or homeby the housewife and placed on abridge table. Inother'wordathe power'driven' ironing machine of this invention is soconstituted that it maybe used around the house or apartment withsubstantially the same facility as an electric handiron." Ithas been afurther object of the'p'resent'inventor to 1 provide Y a l machine ofthis character which includes an improved control whichgreatlysimplifies theoperationof the machine. The control mechanism permits theoperator toengage the shoe with theroll-without causing rotation of therollk {A'further movement of the control mechanism starts rotation oftherolland locks th'elev'er' in roll driving-position. -'I hrough the meansprovided, the operating lever is great- 1y simplified and enablesthehousewife to operate the control by engaging the lever with her forearm."Accordingly, it has been an object of the invention to place the leverin. positionf for this convenient operation, The housewife'may thencontrol the lever while her hands are on the roll adjusting the materialbeing ironed; I, I

Still another distinct advantage of this arrangement resides in theability of the housewife to disconnect the power and release thevshoequickly in case her hands get under thehot shoe or if she desiresdisconnection for any other reason. In fact, with thearrangementdisclosed, the stopping of the power and release'lof the shoeis virtually involuntary, accomplishdlmerely by the act of bumping thearm against the lever. .It is a further object to provide an improvedmounting for the roll wherein the motor is housed within the roll andthe same means which connects the roll to the motor for power purposesalso supports the roll and holds. it .in position. Accordingly, it 'is acomparatively simple matter to more 'ru ygapparentin a descriptionofthe' accompanying drawings in which:

disconnect the roll, involvin in fact, the tie.

i v, Figure 1 is'afront view of the improved ironing I machine. t Figure2is a'perspec'tive viewlof thels'ame'.

Figure 3 is an end view oiflthe, ironer,

I Figure'z4 is a sectional view taken on line 4-4, Figure l; showingtheironer shoe against the roll infi qs ion of use. a j

Figure 5Jis a longitudinal sectional view taken ongline 5f'-5,'Figu'rei.. j 1 v figure 6 is an enlarged, fragmentary, sectional view taken online 5% -6, l igurejl detailing the sh e'an o l rs u u e and mqum n si'g Figure 'i. is a .sec tional"v ie"w .takenronjline T-,l, gu 'f c U,

igure 8 isasecti-onal viewtaken on line 88,

Fieu're'i. Figure 9 is a wiring diagram of the'electricalcircuitoftheironer. v v M Referring "specifically tothedrawings, thebase of the machine isindicatedat 110, the feeding roll generally at' ll, andthe ironer' shoe at lZ. The feeding'roll consists of anopeii'jcylindrical drum [3 having a padded periphery ty ical of suchironer rolls. In this instance,.the padding is made upoia'layerof'fibrous material] M; such as cott'on'or felt fibers, andacloth'covering i5.v

The'roll' ismoimted and" driven centrally of "its length and is'YcIearof obstructions at the ends, sofasjf to permit the operato'r'to ironsuccessive w euis pr ai piece, the total width or which may be greater.than the .widthof thef ironing element.

( As shown in Figure 5 of"the"drawings, the roll is' supportedffrom oneend only; ,'Ifhei support ineansfcons'ist of a cantilever bracket 1,6,,'having a. pedestal. portion ll securedjtd the? base (if "themachinelf, The upper. portion [8L Tot: the bracket extends horizontallyj and parallel 'with'l b e. base, and projects into" the' open end-oithe 'feeding'rolL The inner extremity of this projected? portion; oftheflbracket' includes; a flan gel I7 9 to which is' "seeured the powerunitZll;

,The power unit 20 consists of a motor 2| "and a a speedjreducingunit, 22. The motor end of the coaxially, of the feeding (roll.

power unitiincludes a "fan e,. adapted, to e0 1 the motorIfAroIl drivingshaft 23 projects from H V I v The. power unit is attachedto.thegflange-.-l 9 of. thebracket by means of bo lts'24,1 andQacts a's'an'fextension er the bracket. The is of smallvdiaineter and fits withinthe roll cylinder withampliclearanceremining to we area.

the inner endofjthe powerumtiand is disposed sition centrally betweenthe two ends of the cyl-'- 1:

inder and loosely secured on the roll driving shaft. Accordingly, thecylinder is supported on the roll driving shaft in a balanced condition.

The spider 25 includes a peripheral rim 2B, which is rigidly secured tothe inner periphery of the feed roll drum. A plurality of arms projectsinwardly of this rim and terminates in a hub 21, which is secured to theroll driving shaft by means of a pin 28. It will be noted from a studyof Figure 6 that the bore 21a of the hub is slightly larger than thediameter of the roll driving shaft 23.1 The purpose of this arrangementis to provide a loose or rocking support for the cylinder, which willpermit yielding or rocking of the cylinder when unequal thicknesses ofmaterial are passed through the machine.

Theironer'shoe |2 comprises an arcuate ironing element 30, a heatingelement 3| and a cover plate 32. The shoe is arcuate and ofsubstantially the same radius as the roll and is mounted in cooperativerelationship therewith. The shoe assembly is supported and mounted on aT- shaped support bracket 33 adapted to swing the shoe assembly againstthe roll when the ironer is in operation.

The T-shaped bracket consists of an upwardly extended shank member 34and includes a cross arm 35 at its upper end. Thelower end of thebracket is secured. on a longitudinal rock shaft 36, which is actuatedby means of an operating lever 31 projecting outwardly of the machine toone side of the roll. The operating lever 3| is removably pinned to therock shaft and the-shaft itself is rotatively mounted on each end inbearing brackets 38.

The cross arm 35 includes a pair of spring sockets 39, one socket at'each end of saidarm. Each socket provides a housing fora spring 40, thepurpose of which is to-provide a resilient mounting for the ironer shoeassembly. Each of the resilient mountings is constructed in thefollowing manner:

' A stud 4| is secured to and projects'from the ironer shoe and extendsaxially within the socket 39. The spring is under compression betweenthe ironer shoe and the outer wall 42 f the socket or receptacle 39. Theassembly is. held together by means of a nut 43, in screw-threadedengagement on the stud 4|. The tension of the spring may be adjusted bymeans of this nut. The stud 4| loosely traverses the spring socket 39 soa to permit angular movement of the shoe. The shoe, therefore, is freeto yield angularly, in any direction, and laterally, and the mountingmay be described as universallyresilient.

The'resiliency Of the mountings allows the shoe to be held againstthe'roller under yielding spring pressure, to permit the shoe to besprung away from the roller when unusual thicknesses of material are fedtherebetween. Any irregular thickness is accommodated by the angularyieldingof the shoe, so that the pressure'is uniform over the entireface of the ironer sho'e.

The floating mounting of the roll facilitates freedom of action of thetwo parts, and, moreover, greatly reduces the strain on the supportingand drive members. In other words, there can be no angular thruststransmitted to the roll or to the supporting spiderand drive shaft. Anytendency in this-direction is obviatedjby the free dom of the roll todeflect angularly.

The control lever 31 is secured on the longitudinal rock shaft in a yoke44. This yoke is pinned to the rock shaft and has a lateral boss 45 formounting the control lever. The bore 46 of this yoke is oblong in ahorizontal plane to permit a slight amount of horizontal swing to beimparted to the control lever.

Specifically, the bore 46 of the yoke is of substantially the samediameter as the rock shaft 36, but in addition, the periphery of thebore includes angular clearances 46a, on alternate sides slantedinwardly from each opposite end. These clearances may be formed bydrilling or broaching at an angle to the bore 46 of the yoke, and theypermit the yoke to be canted, as shown in Figure 8. The control lever isremovably secured in the boss 45 by means of a pin 41, to facilitatedisassembling of the ironer.

The bracket |6 includes along its inner edge a notch 48, which acts as alatch to hold the control lever in operative position. The outer end ofthe control lever includes a pad 49, adapted to be manipulated by thearm of the operator.

. Inoperating the ironing machine, the operator contacts this pad withthe elbow and readily moves it downwardly. After downward motion, thelever is moved laterally, so as to latch the lever in the notch 48 ofthe bracket. In this manner the operator has both hands free, to guideand feed the clothing into the machine, and is free to discontinue theengagement of the ironer shoe at any desired time.

Provision ismade for controlling the drive of the roll coincidentallywith the movement of the shoe into engagement with the roll. Thismechanism is located to one side of the bracket and consists primarilyof an electric switch 50. The switch isprovided with a spring pressedbutton 5|, the outer end of which is adapted to be engaged and depressedwhen the control lever is moved laterally into the notch.

The button 5| projects outwardly into the path of movement of theoperating lever. The button is located in alignment with the notchedportion of the bracket, 50 that, when the operating lever isin runningposition the button will be depressed The switch is so constructed thatdepression of this button close the motor circuit.

Referring to Figure 9, illustrating the electric circuit, it will beseen that the switch is in electrical connection with the driving motor2|.

Therefore, when the operating lever is in running position, the buttonwill be energized simultaneously with the engagement Of the shoe and thedriving roll. Upon disengagement of the lever from the notch, the motorwill be deenergized. Disengagement of the shoe and the roller will occurwhen the lever is released.

A switch 52 is mounted on the front of the bracket I6. This switch isindependently connected with the heating element of the shoe to permitcontrol of the temperature of the shoe, independent of the operation ofthe motor. A thermostat may be connected in the circuit to control thetemperature of the ironer shoe, if this is desired.

In order to guide the finished work as it leaves the roll, a pair ofcurved guide elements, in the form of leaf springs 53, is provided.These guides are attached to the back of the ironer shoe. To this endthey are traversed by the studs 4| and held against the shoe by means ofnuts 54. The guides are disposed, in an arc, downwardly from the forwardportion of the base. Y

compression. A..pair of contact blocks 55. is secured on the basemember, upon which the ends of the'springbear. Thus, the shoe isconstantly urged away fromtheiroll, and the workingengagement of theshoe is .dependentupon downward actuation of the control lever.- 1

Since the lever normally is'locked in downward position in the notch,the-shoe may. be readily disengaged from the roll bytheidislodgingof.the lever from the notch. The .leaf'spring guides, thereupon, willurgethexshoeawayifrom the roll. Thus movement: of theroll i's;. limitedby the wedging engagement of the lever 3l ..with the curved inner edgeof the bracket-.16 :above the notch 48. The wedging action .DCC'llISwhen the yoke 44 reaches its limitof horizontal pivotal movementwithrespect'to the rock shaft 36 therewith, having taken up the clearancesprovided for swinging the controllever. The machine is provided with astop member 5 to limit the rearward movement of th shoe assembly whenthe control lever is removed for storage or shipping.

In operation with the control lever engaged in the notch, the shoe isengaged against the roll under a predetermined pressure which isvirtually constant, irrespective of the relatively minor variation inthe thickness of the material being ironed. This condition is assured bythe spring action of the resilient connection between the T-shapedbracket 33 and the shoe.

3 by the cantilever bracket employed I in mounting and 'drivingthe roll.'The'usual' crossishaft and driving members and brackets are completelyThe angular freedom afforded the shoe is effective for permittingrelative, angular motion Hoetween the roll and the shoe as the work isfed therebetween. The forward, leading edge of the shoe is flaredoutwardly as at 56, to facilitate entry of the edge of the material asit is started under th ironer shoe. As the leading edge of the work ispresented to the roll, a slight angular tilting of the shoe will occur,especially if the work is of considerable thickness, as, for example,

a blanket. As the feed progresses, the shoe will return to normalposition, so that there is uniform ironing pressure throughout theentire operation.

In the event that the work is of greater thickness on one side than theother, the feed roll will tilt angularly to a slight degree from itshorizontal alignment. This movement is permitted, as previouslydescribed, by the-loose, centralized drive mounting. In this manner,uniform ironing pressure is assured across the entire length of the rolland shoe.

Briefly, the angulanand lateral resiliencyof the shoe mounting, inaddition to the balanced, loose central mounting of the roller, providesa, structure which will accommodate any reasonable variation in thethickness of the material being ironed. This condition provides auniform ironing pressure across the entire length of the shoe andensures against variations in pressure throughout the length of thepiece being ironed.

dispensed" with, and one end of the rollis' left entirely clear ofobstruction. The difficulty-usually encountered in handling large'pieces of wo-rk is greatly reduced by the present, improvedstructure.Moreover, "since the. driving mechanism is entirely enclosed within therollgthe" danger ofsoilingthe work with oil=and grease from the drivingand supporting apparatus is eliminated." Having described my invention,I claim: 1 1. an ironing machine of. the type including a hollow rolland a cooperating shoe; amounting and driving'means'for supporting saidroll=from one end only comprising, a cantilever support bracket, anelectric motor mounted on-the outer end of said bracket, a roll driving'sl'iaft driven by the motor and extending from the motor in a directionopposite to that of the cantilever bracket, saidelectric motor beingwithin said-"hollow roll, a roll supportanddriving' hub Within saidroll, said hub being positioned substantially medially the length ofsaid roll, said hub-beingsmolmted directly on said roll driving.shaftzandproviding the supporting means" for. the roll.

2. In an ironing machine'of the type including, a motordriven roll andan ironing shoe and means for moving said; shoe into and out: of emgagement with said roll, amotor forI rotating 'said roll, a switch forenergizing said motor, and a control lever for said shoe actuatingmeans, said switch mounted adjacent to said control lever, but notwithin that path of movement of the control lever which is effective forengaging the shoe with the roll, and means whereby, upon furtheractuation of said control lever out of its aforesaid path of movement,the switch is actuated to energize said motor.

3. In an ironer'of the type including, a base, a roll and a shoe; a rollsupport mounted on the base and extending into the end of the roll, adriving means for the roll mounted on said support within the roll, anda cross plate secured internally of the roll intermediate its length,said roll driving means being loosely connected to said plate axiallyofthe roll whereby the roll is yieldable radially for the accommodation ofmaterials of unequal thickness passing through the ironer.

4. A portable ironing machine of the typeineluding an ironing roll and ashoe adapted to be moved toward and from the roll and comprise ing abase, a bracket at one end of the base, said bracket being of angularform with the upper portion projecting parallel with the base, anelectric motor supported at the free end of said from the motor endwhich is opposite to the The utility of the machine is greatly increasedbracket and having its axis disposed parallel with the base, saidironing roll supported on said shaft in driving connection therewith,and said motor being disposed within the roll.

5. A portable ironer of the type including a roll and a shoe movabletoward the roll and comprising; a base, said roll rotatably supported onthe base, an electric motor for driving said roll, a switch for saidmotor, said ironer shoe disposed adjacent to said roll, a shaftsupporting said ironer shoe, a lever fixed to said shaft for rocking thesame to move the shoe into and out of contact with the roll, said leverbeing constructed and arranged relative to the shaft to permit lateralmovement, and said switch being disposed in the path of lateral movementof the lever for operation thereby. 1

, 6. A portable ironer of the type including a roll and a shoe movablerelative to the roll and comprising a base, a roll supporting bracket,said roll supported on said bracket, a rock shaft journalled on saidbase, said ironer shoe carried by said shaft and adapted for movementtoward and from the roll, a lever, means attaching said lever to saidshaft, said means permitting horizontal movement of the lever, saidbracket including a notch for receiving and for locking the lever, saidnotch being disposed adjacent the horizontal plane of the lever when theshoe is in contact with the roll, and a switch for controlling the powerfor the roll,'-said switch being disposed in the horizontal plane of thenotch and being operated by the lever when the lever is engaged in thenotch.

7. A portable ironer of the type including a roll and a shoe movabletoward said roll, comprising a base, means rotatably supporting aid rollabove the base, an electric motor for driving said roll, a switch forsaid motor, means supporting said shoe for movement into and out ofpressing engagement with the roll, a lever mounted for movement in pathstransverse to each other, means connecting the leverto the shoe wherebymovement of the lever in one of its paths will move the shoe relative tothe roll, and said switch being disposed in the other path of movementof the lever for operation thereby.

8. An'ironing machine of the type including a motor driven roll and ashoe and comprising; a base, a bracket extending up from the baseopposite one end of said roll, said bracket having an extension lyingwithin and supporting the roll, a rock shaft supported on the base inthe rear ot a vertical axial plane of the roll, and parallel with theroll axis, an arm connecting said shoe with the rock shaft, an armconnected with the rock shaft and extending towards the front of themachine, said arm coacting with means on the bracket for determining theposition of the shoe in relation to the shoe, said arm being operablefor moving the shoe, substantially as described.

9. In an ironing machine of the type including a motor driven roll andan ironing shoe; means supporting said shoe for effecting movement ofthe shoe toward and from the roll, a motor for driving said roll,control means for said motor, a control lever mounted for operation intwo paths of movement and connected to said shoe for moving the sametoward and from the roll when the lever is operated back and forth inone path of movement, said control means being disposed in the otherpath for causing actuation of the control means when the lever is movedin the other of said paths.

WILLIAM E. STILWELL, JR.

